Walnut beer anyone?

[lacto]

I am surrounded by wild walnut trees ... so can I make a walnut pop? (I am describing it as pop instead of beer so that I do not insult anyone by calling a nut concoction a beer!)

I want to ferment a walnut porridge - I do not want to include anything else like hops or malted things. However, to get a treacly bitter beer like flavour I am inclined to add chicory leaves for a wonderful bitterness, plus roasted chicory root for a coffee/toffee note, and baking the porridge to a brown mash.

Any suggestions will be gladly received but be aware that I am looking to make a pop from baked walnut porridge, chicory leaves and roasted roots, and fermented with a fruit yeast water.

I think I will certainly get an alcoholic brew - I am not after high alcohol content (hence the yeast water which might give up to 4%abv).

Is this madness, or can this kid play with mud?

 

[pvtpublic]

You'll need some diastatic power to convert the starches in the walnuts, and even then, I'm not even sure if it would convert, if it has anything to convert. The other issue is all of the oils in walnuts, they're hard on the yeast, especially wild yeast. But let's say that it all goes off without a hitch and you have yourself some walnut beer in front of you. The walnuts have a lot of tannic acid in them that will concentrate into an incredibly harsh astringency. You could leech that out like you would with acorns, but I'm not sure of how effective that would be.

 

[lacto]

Thanks for the info pvtpublic. Would this also apply to chestnuts?

 

[sibelman]

According to healthline.com, there's not much fermentable (at least, not by yeast) in walnuts. Your quest may prove to be very challenging:

Walnuts are made up of 65% fat and about 15% of protein. They’re low in carbs — most of which consist of fiber.

A 1-ounce (30-gram) serving of walnuts — about 14 halves — provides the following nutrients (2Trusted Source):

• Calories: 185
• Water: 4%
• Protein: 4.3 grams
• Carbs: 3.9 grams
• Sugar: 0.7 grams
• Fiber: 1.9 grams
• Fat: 18.5 grams

Chestnuts are quite different, and contain much more carbohydrates, including sugars (at least after roasting but maybe even when raw).

Best of luck with your nutty beer ideas!

 

[hotbeer]

Nuts tend to have lots of fat and lots of protein. Not so much on the carbohydrate side which is one of the things you need to even begin to have anything to ferment.

You might can use them for flavor adjunts, but I'd think the fat will be an issue for things like head retention if that is desired.

 

[DBhomebrew]

hence the yeast water which might give up to 4%abv

What about the yeast water keeps it under 4%?

 

[lacto]

What about the yeast water keeps it under 4%?

A good question ... I am only sharing what I have found online - that wild yeast is not as efficient as the commercial ones - I read that it might manage 5abv. Not being knowledgeable as those who are adept at brewing (I still do not understand what is sparging!) I can only go by what others have said - until I actually find out what is truly what. So please fill me in ...

 

[DBhomebrew]

If you're working with wild fermentation you don't know what mix of organisms are working for you. Hence, you don't know their fermentation characteristics.

 

[vit98]

As for your question about whether or not this is madness, I think it's definitely worth a try. There's no harm in experimenting, and you might just end up creating something delicious. So go ahead and play with mud!

 

[lacto]

Well, I take the point regarding walnuts - especially what pvtpublic has written - I am not looking to be clever or wasting time that could otherwise be spent on something creative ... but I am simply trying to acquire a tasty enjoyment directly from my surroundings ie fruits from the garden, wild things from the woods.

Therefore, I have slightly change the process from walnuts to chestnuts. The wort before airlocking tastes fabulous (after treating the chestnuts - frozen from last year - the same way as for Essene bread, or roasting mashed nuts (sounds a bit eye watering!!). I bow to any of you moderators if you believe I should change the title from walnuts to chestnuts and I will change the thread.